Top State Republican Says No To Medicaid Expansion

FRANKFORT, Ky. - A top state Republican is calling for Governor Steve Beshear to opt out of the Medicaid expansion portion of the Affordable Care Act.

House Republican Floor Leader Jeff Hoover said Thursday that Kentucky should take advantage of the Supreme Court’s ruling that allows states to opt out of the expansion. He called it one of the costliest provisions in the law.

"If Kentucky does not opt out of this Medicaid expansion, we will see further reductions in our funding levels for education and other things or we will have to face a significant tax increase, which obviously no one wants," Hoover said in a statement Thursday.

Hoover says opting in would mean a 48 percent increase in Medicaid coverage, which he says would have a negative impact on the financial stability of the state. That’s despite a promise by the federal government to pay 100 percent of the increased Medicaid payments for the first three years. Hoover says after that window has passed, Kentucky would be forced to share the burden.